


I am the Rose of Sharon

by penhales



Category: True Detective
Genre: Atheism, M/M, True Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-24 07:16:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9710630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/penhales/pseuds/penhales
Summary: They make a silent promise every day and Rust never quite unpacks the box of Christian memorabilia in the corner of the bedroom.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all, I wanted to write a bit about Rust, Marty, and religion. I think it's important to mention that this short work is less about Christianity and more about faith and love as concepts and the way that religion means different things to different people. I chose the title after a section of text from The Song of Solomon which has super loose terms for interpretation because I think it represents this story well. 
> 
> I'm including a beautiful choral arrangement of this text for your listening pleasure:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9Bk2pmB8Xw
> 
> Otherwise, I hope you enjoy this! :)

Rust doesn’t set foot in churches for a while.  
  
He sees them in his head. Empty, growing, breathing churches, covered in vines. Churches covered in black scrawls of paint and smudges of ash. He smells coral honeysuckle. He dreams of ripping pages from bibles, and finding different names on all of them. Rust knows some of the names and has forgotten others. He wakes up and the churches are gone.

He’s healed up and is already helping Marty around the house again and the whole house is practically gleaming under his efforts. He repaints siding and fixes the squeaky front step to the porch. He fixes the leaky sink in their bathroom and wipes down the kitchen counters. In exchange, Marty sometimes runs a hand down his back while he’s working and tells him how nice it looks. Other times Marty brings him a beer and kisses him wherever his mouth lands at first guess. Rust’s favorite place to be kissed is his shoulder, which is something he scarcely knew nor thought about before this. He enjoys sleeping beside Marty and even more he enjoys the silence they keep most of the time. They make a silent promise every day and Rust never quite unpacks the box of Christian memorabilia in the corner of the bedroom. It’s much better than any hollow promises a religion can offer him at this point, and at first he really believes that’s all there is to it.

Unearned affection is his cross, easy happiness is his bible.

One day, Marty is looking at him across the breakfast table, peering over the edge of his newspaper and Rust puts out his cigarette in the handmade ashtray Audrey gave them for Christmas.

“For fuck’s sake, Marty, a picture would last you longer.”

“What? I can’t look at you?”

“You can, except I know why you’re looking at me and I don’t like it.”

Marty puts the paper down and Rust knows the conversation is coming again. It happens the same way every time and he cannot be moved.

“I just think it would really help you to do this, Rust.”

“I want nothing to do with those people and that place.”

“I’m not saying you have to believe in anything or think anything, but if you could just be –“

“-That’s the thing, Marty.”

Rust understands that the look on Marty’s face is one that he’s gotten before and never quite been able to handle correctly. It looks the same as it always has, but it’s no longer followed with insults and complaints. Marty doesn’t speak that way anymore and Rust loves him too much for it. He runs a hand over his face, clean shaven, and he’s never gotten used to it since.

“I’m not going. You can go. I’m not going.”

He rises and leaves the table before waiting for Marty’s reply. He walks outside through the front door and lights a new cigarette. One of Audrey’s ashtrays is on the table on the porch and the cigarettes in it may as well each have a different Sunday written on them. He inhales and adds more ash to the pile.


End file.
